“Oh, that’s Eureka and Mira’s cage.” Fu Miaoxue called back.

“Eureka… Mira?” Bai Youwei asked, puzzled. “Who are they?”

“I never told you? They’re the two African leopards I keep. They were quite adorable as cubs, but once they grew up, the smell was impossible, so they were moved to the room at the end of the second floor.”

Fu Miaoxue emerged from the dressing room, changed into a lake-blue gown.

Her skin was fair. On her, a color this vivid and fresh made her look particularly lively and beautiful.

“Well?” She turned a slow circle in place, smiling as she looked at Bai Youwei. “I’m in a good mood today — this one’s just right.”

Good mood?

Bai Youwei silently took issue with that.

The house had been robbed in the middle of the night. She’d been grabbed and nearly strangled. She’d witnessed a gory execution at point-blank range. And now her future boyfriend was locked in a cage — yet she claimed to be in a good mood?

Compared to Fu Miaoxue, Bai Youwei felt she had to be among the most gentle and well-adjusted people alive.

Evidently something showed in her expression, because Fu Miaoxue’s brow twitched slightly. “What’s the matter? Does this dress not look good?”

“It looks good.” Bai Youwei gave it a dismissive glance and said, “I was just wondering — if you keep him in your room, how do you handle… bathroom needs? There would definitely be a smell.”

Fu Miaoxue blinked wide eyes. “Have you never kept a dog? If he goes to the bathroom in the room, you give him a beating, of course~ He’s only allowed to go outside when he’s being walked!”

The corner of Bai Youwei’s mouth twitched. She stared at Fu Miaoxue with a complicated expression. “You… you’re going to walk him? Take him to the bathroom?”

“That sort of thing is for the servants to handle. No need to worry about it.” Fu Miaoxue smiled and walked over to the cage, admiring her new pet with satisfaction. “Good boy, I’m going for breakfast now. Be good while I’m gone.”

Du Lai lay with his eyes shut, motionless.

Fu Miaoxue didn’t mind in the least. She turned away, gave Bai Youwei a light pat on the shoulder, and smiled. “Come on, friend — it’s time for breakfast.”

Bai Youwei took one last look at the cage, then followed Fu Miaoxue out of the room.

……

Fu Miaoxue kept an extremely regular schedule.

Bai Youwei wasn’t sure if she’d always been this way or if the tutor had recently drilled it into her.

Six thirty — wake up. Seven thirty — breakfast. Then an hour and a half of free time. At nine, lessons began.

After breakfast, Fu Miaoxue picked through the table and loaded a small selection of food, then headed back to her room to feed her “dog.”

She was in high spirits. Du Lai was not at all receptive. He sat with a grim expression, leaning against the golden bars, and asked: “Where are my men?”

Fu Miaoxue tapped the edge of the bowl lightly with her spoon. “Eat breakfast, and I’ll tell you.”

Du Lai shot her a look full of loathing. “I’ll eat myself.”

“No, you won’t.” Fu Miaoxue said with a sweet smile. “A well-trained pet only eats food given by its owner. It doesn’t touch anything else. Understand?”

Du Lai didn’t understand — but he understood perfectly well that fighting Fu Miaoxue’s family would do him no good whatsoever.

He had no choice but to swallow his resentment and accept spoonful after spoonful of walnut and oat porridge.

Fu Miaoxue fed him while she talked. “Your men — they talked within about an hour of being locked up. All of you are a crew of professional art thieves. You’ve been targeting galleries and wealthy estates. A powerful client spotted your skills and hired you at a high price to steal something from my grandfather — a top-secret file. You were fairly certain it was in the treasure vault, and figured you might as well pocket a few antiques on the side, enough to set yourselves up for life. So you infiltrated the estate and have been searching for the vault’s location ever since.”

Fu Miaoxue paused, smiled, and fed Du Lai another spoonful of oats. “I’m a little curious — why didn’t you try the room at the end of the second floor?”

Du Lai replied coldly: “We studied the estate’s layout long before this. That room couldn’t possibly be where the vault is. You mentioned it on purpose, hoping I’d go investigate — and then watch me get what was coming to me. The real vault has to be in the study. That’s the most likely location.”

Fu Miaoxue smiled. “Don’t make it sound so unkind. I was actually saving you, you know. Did you really think — after stealing from my grandfather and handing things over to whoever hired you — you wouldn’t be killed to keep you quiet?”